Canine Forensics Foundation

Sniffing Out History, One Wag at a Time! 

Founded in 2019, our team boasts over 40 years of combined experience sniffing out the past. We specialize in using our highly trained canine companions to locate hidden burials, some dating back a staggering 9,000 years! These amazing dogs act as our partners in discovery, uncovering lost history without ever disturbing a single burial. They're more than just search tools – they're family, raised and trained with love to become the ultimate history hounds. With wagging tails, they lead us to forgotten graves, which we meticulously mark with pin flags and GPS coordinates – a confidential silent map to the whispers of the past! 

Fueled by passion and a thirst for discovery.

Our organization is a team of dedicated independent contractors. Our Board of Directors, three strong individuals, steer the ship. On the ground, we have a fantastic team of seven independent contractor handlers and their canine partners as well as the three Board members and their dogs. These certified experts are the best in the business, using their highly skilled dogs to form a remarkable search force. Together, we form a unique team, sniffing out history's forgotten whispers!

No burial is a mystery to our incredible canine team!

These specially trained partners possess an amazing ability to locate and alert on historic human remains. From ancient Native American burial grounds to forgotten pioneer cemeteries, our canine team leaves no whisper unheard. Their keen noses sniff out even the faintest traces of the past, whether it's a single, weathered bone, a fully articulated skeleton, or an unmarked cemetery. Expertly trained and certified in human bone recognition, these remarkable partners ensure every piece of history is uncovered.

The application of K9FF Historical Human Remains Detection (HHRD) K9s represents one of several non-invasive tools that can assist archeologists in building predictive models for the effective search of such sites. The parts of this model should include oral history, historical records, and non-invasive remote sensing survey tools such as ground penetrating radar (GPR), LiDAR, magnetometry, and electrical resistivity (ER).

Our canine partners and their handlers are all about gentle discovery – they NEVER dig or disturb an area!

If excavation and relocation are needed, we have a network of skilled archaeologists ready to assist. Think of uncovering history like building a transparent map, layer by layer.

Here's how it works:

Layer 1:  Whispers of the Past – Oral History: We begin by listening to the stories passed down through generations, gathering clues about where history might be buried.

Layer 2: Unearthing the Written Word – Historical Records: Next, we delve into historical documents, piecing together the puzzles of the past.

Layer 3: The Canine Search Party – HHRD Dogs (Historic Human Remains Detection): Our amazing HHRD dogs refine the search area, pinpointing locations with their incredible sense of smell.

Layer 4: Technological Confirmation – GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar): We use advanced GPR technology to flag, record, and confirm the dogs' alerts.  

Layer 5: Additional Technological Confirmation – LiDAR  (Light Detection and Ranging): LiDAR adds another layer of confirmation, generally using a drone and LiDAR system to help map differences under ground, like burial plots, etc .

Layer 6: Mapping the Invisible – Magnetometry: Magnetometry adds another layer of confirmation, helping map potential disturbances in the soil.

Layer 7: Final Verification – Electrical Resistivity: Electrical resistivity provides a final layer of corroboration, ensuring a precise and respectful excavation (performed by our archaeologist partners, if desired).

If each layer of this predictive model is printed on a separate transparency that includes all alerts and "marked anomolies". Then the transparencies are stacked one on top of the other and  the correlation of these anomolies to each other layers' anomolies corroborates each alert.     

By working together, this multi-layered approach (a predictive model) allows us to locate historical sites with minimal disruption, ensuring a responsible and fascinating journey into the past!

Who do we partner with?

Our expertise extends to a wide range of organizations:

• Tribal Nations: We work hand-in-hand with Indigenous communities to respectfully locate and honor ancestral burial grounds or even single burials.
• Cultural Resource Management Firms: We collaborate with CRM firms to ensure responsible and ethical archaeological practices.
• Archaeologists, Historians, and Heritage Organizations: Our K9FF teams assist archaeologists, historians, and heritage organizations in uncovering the whispers of the past.
• Government Agencies: We provide our services to federal, state, and local agencies for the effective management of historical resources.
• Builders & Developers: We partner with builders and developers to protect historical sites during construction projects and avoid costly stop work orders and causing damage to previously identified culturally sensitive sites.
• Churches and occassionally individuals: We work to identify burial area and indivdual burials.
• Cold cases for Law Enforcement on a case-by-case basis: We assist in closing cold cases and giving closure to  families.

By working together, we can unlock the secrets of the past while ensuring respect and preservation for future generations. We strive to offer our canine search services to ensure that the interests of everyone are met in locating and protecting ancestors and ancestral burial sites worldwide. Additionally, we help ensure that proposed projects do not disturb burials and that all data and photos remain entirely confidential.

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A New Weapon in Our Arsenal:

Ground Penetrating Radar!

We're thrilled to announce the addition of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) services to our canine search expertise. This powerful combination unlocks the most accurate survey results possible. Here's the exciting breakdown:

Step 1: Canine Search  – Honing the Focus: Our highly trained K9 partners take the lead, sniffing out potential burial sites and shrinking the search area.
Step 2: GPR Technology – Confirming the Target: Advanced GPR technology takes over, creating a detailed image of what lies beneath the surface within the narrowed zone.
Step 3: Building a Multi-Layered Predictive Model: Combined with oral history, historical records, and other data, this information strengthens our predictive model, offering layers of confirmation for a successful survey. We create a more precise approach, starting with the canine search and then adding GPR. This ensures minimal disruption while uncovering history's whispers!

Predictive Modeling:

The combination of Canine Search and  Ground Penetrating Radar creates a dynamic, layered Predictive Model. This model is strengthened by additional information, such as Oral History and Archival Data, allowing us to predict locations with even greater precision. By corroborating findings from both the canine alerts, GPR scans, and LiDAR we can significantly improve the chances of success and reduce the risk of missed burials

By integrating Canine Search with Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) , you are combining the strengths of biological, technological, and historical methods to create a highly effective predictive model. The ability to cross-verify canine alerts with GPR scans   not only increases accuracy but also enhances credibility in scientific, archaeological, and forensic communities. Adding Oral History and Archival Data into the mix is a brilliant way to bring human knowledge and historical context into a tech-driven methodology.